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Letter to the editor

Developers see shiny jewel in old landfill

The county considers three proposals for Pinellas' last large piece of undeveloped land.

By RITA FARLOW, Times Staff Writer
Published August 12, 2007

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For years, Pinellas County officials have considered putting sports fields or a golf course at the old Toytown landfill, the county's last large piece of undeveloped property.

Now three developers have submitted proposals to transform the 240-acre site in mid Pinellas into mixed-use centers that would include commerce as well as open space and recreation:

- Industrial Realty Group of Los Angeles and Bear Creek Capital of Cincinnati envision creating an "urban town center" with residential villages, office space, two hotels, passive parks and a sportsplex with ballfields, tennis and volleyball courts, and a children's water park.

- Ryan Cos. US, a Minneapolis commercial real estate firm, and partner Commercial Properties Realty Trust propose retail and entertainment space and more than 2-million square feet of research, office and light industrial uses. More than 30 acres would be devoted to athletic fields and parks.

- St. Petersburg's Sembler Co., known for projects like BayWalk in St. Petersburg and Centro Ybor in Tampa, proposes what it describes as a "city within a park." Toytown Park would have residences, shops, a hotel and a community center.

In response to its request to the development community, the county received a fourth proposal from Tri City Kart Club, which sought a lease agreement for 15 acres to build a go-cart race track.

Named for a subdivision created in the 1920s, the closed, county-owned Toytown landfill is just south of where Interstate 275 and Roosevelt Boulevard cross.

The county invited developers to submit their ideas earlier this year after Bear Creek Capital approached Pinellas with this deal: Give us the landfill and we'll build an $870-million multiuse project.

County commissioners were intrigued, but wanted to hear what other companies could offer before accepting anyone's proposal.

And before anything could be built, the landfill would need to be stabilized and capped to prevent the spread of contaminants. That site preparation could cost upwards of $150-million and would be absorbed by the developers.

Dirty work experience

A representative of IRG/BCC said his team has extensive experience in site remediation work, including Superfund projects at McClellan Air Force Base in Sacramento, Calif., and Alameda Naval Station in San Francisco.

"They have taken the dirtiest and most difficult sites and not just developed them, but they've been successful," said local land use consultant Todd Pressman, who is working with IRG/BCC.

In January, IRG/BCC approached county commissioners and offered to clean up the site and build a regional shopping destination and affordable housing in exchange for the land.

The group is poised to buy an adjacent, privately owned 60-acre parcel that would be used for homes and offices.

"That's the critical part," Pressman said.

Housing alternative

Unlike its competitors, Ryan Cos. US, and its partner Commercial Properties Realty Trust, does not propose to build housing as part of its project.

Instead, it says it would give 10 percent of its future yearly net proceeds to a "Legacy Fund" that would work with local nonprofit organizations to provide affordable housing assistance, job training and other services.

"It's an industrial area, so we took a risk and wanted to use the Legacy Fund to address that element in an organic way," said Barry Tilmann, regional development director for Commercial Properties Realty Trust.

An offer to buy

Sembler's proposal touts that Toytown could become to Pinellas County what Central Park is to New York and Grant Park is to Chicago.

In addition to shopping, offices and homes, Sembler's "Toytown Park" would include amenities like public art displays and a community amphitheater, according to the developer.

Sembler's proposal also includes an offer to pay $15-million for the Toytown site, plus a per-square-foot price to be negotiated should the county choose its proposal.

What's next

A committee from the county's economic development department will consider the "high points and low points" of each design before they present recommendations to the county commissioners sometime this fall, said Joe Lauro, the county's purchasing director.

Among the criteria officials will consider are how the projects would benefit residents and the possible effects on the local economy through the creation of new businesses, taxable property and county expenditure reduction.

In their proposals, developers estimate Toytown could generate $20-million to $25-million in taxable value the first year and create thousands of new jobs.

"This is the heart of the county," said Ryan Cos. US vice president Gary Bauler. "It's ideal for employment and job growth."

Still, each acknowledges the difficulties of building on top of an old landfill.

"It's a challenge, no doubt about it," said Pressman, the IRG/BCC consultant.

Fast Facts:

Toytown history

1920s - Toytown subdivision is created.

1961 - Toytown landfill opens.

1983 - Pinellas County purchases the land from St. Petersburg.

1991 - Landfill closes.

Highlights of proposals

IRG/Bear Creek (The Parks at Pinellas County)

- 1.5-million square feet of open-air retail.

- 1.5-million square feet of corporate office space.

- 1,500 residential units.

- YMCA branch, softball and soccer fields, tennis and sand volleyball courts, skate park, dog park, water park, improvements to Blue Heron Lake.

Ryan Cos. US

- 1.4-million square feet of research/office space.

- 25-acre town center including 943,400 square feet of light industrial space and 1.68-million square feet of retail/entertainment development.

- 30 acres of recreational and open space, including athletic fields, cross-country running trails and skate park.

Sembler (Toytown Park)

- 1.8-million square feet of main street-style retail space.

- 2.2-million square feet of corporate and research office space.

- 1,259 mixed residential units

- Hotel, community center, public art areas, open green space, skate park, dog park, poll and sports fields.

[Last modified August 11, 2007, 21:23:46]